Lantern base support



Oct. 19, 1937. w. M. MOXLEY LANTERN BASE SUPPORT Filed Feb. 23, 1937 Patented Oct. 19, 1937 I JUNIT'ED ST 555 ATENT OFFlCE William M. Moxley, Kansas City, Mo.

Application February 23, 1937, Serial No. 127,223

4 Claims.

This invention relates to lantern base supports, and it has for its object to provide an improved method of assembly by virtue of which the supporting legs of electric lanterns may be attached 5 to the sheet metal lantern bottoms at a minimum cost and in such manner as to provide a firm and rigid construction and one. which will not get out of alignment even after long periods of use.

The lantern of the present invention is of the general character of that illustrated in my copending application, Serial No. 100,767, filed September 14, 1936. Lanterns of this character are now commonly known and comprise a battery receiving body and batteries which supply current for incandescent bulbs projecting from the bot tom of said body.

The lantern may be rested upon the ground, table or other support without damage to the incandescent bulbs, by the provision of a wire stand or base, and it is in the provision of improved means for attaching this wire stand or base to the body of the lantern that the present invention particularly resides.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a lantern constructed in accordance with the invention;

' Fig. 2 is a fragmentary sectional view through the bottom of the lantern;

Fig. 3 is a plan View of one of the leg cap plates, hereinafter described;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a pair of end legs and the wire base rail, and

Fig. 5 is a plan View of the lantern bottom shell with the remaining parts removed.

In the drawing, the main shell of the body is indicatedat 5 and fits into the lantern bottom 6. This lantern bottom is in the form of a stamped sheet metal shell, and it carries the sockets l for the incandescent bulbs 8, these parts all being common in lanterns of this nature.

The support for the. lantern comprises a base rail 9 and legs l0. After these legs have been assembled with respect to the shell 6 as hereinafter described, their lower ends are welded at H to the base rail 9. The material of which the bottom shell 6 is made is relatively thin and bends more or less readily.

Therefore, attempts to merely weld the wire legs to these shells have resulted more or less unsatisfactorily, because of the small area of contact to which solder or welding material could be applied and also due to the fact that any bending of the metal of the shell results in throwing the legs out of alignment.

The public is more or less careless in handling articles of this sort, and the lanterns are sometimes set down with enough force to knock the legs out of alignment. It is therefore the object of the. present invention to provide a structure of such a nature that not only will the legs be secured to the lantern bottom, but they will be secured thereto in such manner that the parts mutually reinforce and brace each other. By virtue of this arrangement, a very strong and durable support and one. not likely to get out of alignment is provided.

In carrying out the invention, the ends of legs 10 are formed in pairs with their upper ends connected by horizontal loops l2. The legs ID are passed downwardly through openings i3, formed in the lantern bottom 6, after which a segmental leg cap M is riveted in place by a rivet 5, passing through an opening I 6 of the leg cap and an opening ll of the lantern bottom.

When this leg cap i4 is drawn forcibly down by the act of riveting, the horizontal bend I2 is bound rigidly between plate l4 and the lantern bottom, and this in turn rigidly affixes the legs NJ to the lantern bottom. In addition, the material of the bends l2, extending substantially all the way across the lantern bottom, reinforces and stifiens the material of the lantern bottom at the point of attachment of the legs l0. After the parts have been assembled as described, the lower ends of the legs ID are welded at II to the rectangular wire loop 9 constituting the base rail of the support.

The stand herein shown and described is of particular utility in connection with electric lanterns in which the incandescent bulbs project from the bottom of the lantern, because here. the wire elements are caused to serve the double function of a lantern support and a guard for the incandescent bulbs to protect them against accidental breakage by contact with other objects. However, to the extent that the proposed structure is novel in other arts, I claim its use in the construction of supports for sheet metal articles other than lanterns.

Consequently, it is to be understood that the invention includes within its purview whatever changes fairly come within either the terms or the spirit of the appended claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a device of the character described, the combination with a sheet metal body of a pair of wire legs passing therethrough, said legs being body.

2. A structure as recited in claim 1, in combination with a base railto which the lower ends of said legs are fixed.

3. In an electric lantern, a lantern body of sheet metal provided with a bulb socket in its bottom and provided with openings adjacent its opposite ends for the passage of wire legs, wire legs constructed in pairs with their upper ends united by bowed portions, the legs of the pairs being passed through the openings at the respec tive ends of the lantern bottom, leg cap plates lying inside the lantern bottom and fastening means passing through the cap plates and body and binding the bowed connecting portions of the legs forcibly between themselves and the lantern bottom. V v

4. A structure as recited in claim 3,7and a base rail to which the lower ends of said legs are secured. V V

' WILLIAM M. MOXLEY. 

